Country music legend and Hall of Fame member George Jones has come out slinging verbal daggers at pop country performers, saying “They Have Stolen Our Identity.”

Jones, who has publicly come out against pop country before but never in such blunt terms, let the gloves fall in an interview today (11-2-09) with The Associated Press.

From the AP:

“When asked about what he thought about music by today’s top country stars, the 78-year-old said while they are good, “they’ve stolen our identity.” Jones made the comment during a recent interview when asked about music by artists like Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift.

“They had to use something that was established already, and that’s traditional country music. So what they need to do really, I think, is find their own title, because they’re definitely not traditional country music. . . It’s good to know that we still do traditional country music. Alan Jackson still does it, so does George Strait. We still have it, and there’s quite a few of us that are going to hope that it comes back one of these days.”

“How can you call that music? Now, I love music, too. I love all kinds. I really do. I’ve got Brook Benton. I like his singing. Ray Charles. I’ve got an open mind. But now, you can’t call rap, talking stuff like that, music. No, no, no, you’ve got to have another name for that.”

Nothing that George Jones said was groundbreaking, except for that it was George Jones saying it, and so people will listen. This story is spreading all across the dirty internet like a bad rash, and just like the Newsweek article from this Spring, it can only help increase awareness in the mainstream about the movement to Save Country Music.

8 Comments

Janelle
November 2, 2009 @
10:06 pm

LOVE IT! Just read the article myself and figured there would be something about it over here! :o) lol Be sure to check out the voting — seems a lot of people agree…MAYBE, just maybe this will wake up some corporate Nashvillians!

Yeah, this article is all over the place. Since it originated with the AP, a ton of other news organizations are picking it up. I think it touches a vein with a lot of people. There are many that feel the exact way George Jones does, people who are too scared to say it. People who are not even country fans, but don’t need to be country fans to know something has gone terribly wrong with the genre. Maybe this will ignite the debate on a much grander scale.

THERE ARE MANY MANY ARTISTS STILL DOING REAL COUNTRY MUSIC. DALE WATSON, WAYNE HANCOCK, HANK III, THE WEARY BOYS AND SO ON. HOWEVER, MOST OF THOSE GUYS GET LITTLE TO NO EXPOSURE BY THE MAIN STREAM “POP COUNTRY” ESTABLISHMENT. GEORGE IS RIGHT THEY HAVE STOLEN COUNTY MUSIC’S IDENTITY AND PERVERTED INTO SOMETHING THAT IS LACKING ANYTHIN REMOTELY RESEMBLING TRADITION OR SOUL.

I have to agree with George. The fact of the matter, though, is music has nothing to do with Country music anymore. It’s all a marketing ploy. Since the majority of the people buying and listening to music via new technology, cheapest and easiest way to market it, are young thru middle aged computer savey people, the music has changed to what “they” want to hear. Overexposed 80’s rock!

I totally agree with George Jones. They have succesfully stolen the identity of country music and say country music needs to evolving. Into what? I like to hear steel-guitar, fiddle and banjo! Feelin the roots in the music.. If these CMA people call themselves country, what in the names lord am i listen to when im listen to: Dale Watson, Johnny Bush, Alan Jackson George Strait, Patty Loveless, Red Simpson, George Jones, Rhonda Vincent, Asleep at the wheel, Merle Haggard Tanya Tucker, Heather Myles, Johnny Cash… I think theres many people who think country music should sound like these artists i mention and what country music stands for, not like Swift and company.